


""I have nightmares too."

by AngelFromUnderneath



Series: Voyager Oneshots [2]
Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Aliens, Angst, F/M, Fear, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-13
Updated: 2017-07-13
Packaged: 2018-12-01 17:18:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11491008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelFromUnderneath/pseuds/AngelFromUnderneath
Summary: Part 2 to "I'm right here."Even after some time in sickbay the flashbacks won't leave Kathryn alone.Just some random fluff, some drama and a bit of cute Naomi.





	""I have nightmares too."

As he had promised, Chakotay was waiting by the side of Kathryn's bed when she woke at 0700 the next morning. 

"Chakotay ..." she smiled at him, squinting through sickbay's bright lights. "You're still here."

He nodded. "I promised, didn't I? How are you feeling?" 

"Like I spent all night running ... and like I need a cup of coffee."   
They shared a quiet chuckle, before the Doctor interrupted them. 

"I'm afraid there won't be any coffee for you in the next few days, Captain," he told her, waving a scanner in front of her face. "It would only heighten your emotions and induce more flashbacks and nightmares." 

Kathryn sighed, "I guess I'm also staying here for observation."

"Correct."

"Don't worry. I'll handle things on the bridge," Chakotay assured her, "And I'll come by for daily reports."

Only for reports? That seemed a little mean to her. Sickbay was always lonely, even though the Doctor was around all the time. 

Her first officer must have noticed the disappointment in her eyes.  
"I'll also visit ... for chats ... if you like." 

"I'd like that a lot," she agreed. 

\---

Kathryn felt like she had been transported back in time - to her eight year old self lying in hospital with a nasty concussion.   
She remembered staring at the clock for ages, just waiting for her parents' visit. It had felt like years.

And it felt like years now while she was waiting for Chakotay.   
His shift had only started an hour ago, but Kathryn was already growing impatient. 

"Please let me just take a walk. 20 minutes," she begged as the Doctor walked past the foot of her bed.

He turned to face her, sighing, "And if you collapse in the middle of a corridor, Captain? Or suffer a panic attack in a turbolift? I'm sorry, but I don't want to risk it." 

She groaned in annoyance when he excused himself to go and get something from the mess hall. 

As she directed her eyes back at the ceiling and her eyelids fluttered shut, an image took over her mind.   
\---

She was standing in a dark courtyard, framed by large walls of crumbling brick and metal fences, her back thrown against the cold stone, her bare feet itching with dust. In front of her, the bulky aliens were openly torturing a male of another humanoid species - except for some ridges and violet blood he looked pretty much human. 

A female and a child were close by, watching in horror as the male screeched and thrashed with the pain of electrocution. 

When he dropped to the ground for a moment of relieve, the child ran forward - in an attempt to help its father. 

The female screamed as one of the guards grabbed the child by the collar of its robe and threw it to the ground brutally.

Kathryn couldn't believe the cruelty of what she saw next. 

With the click of a button on the alien's control panel, the child began screaming in vain, its body thrown into the air from the strength of the electric shocks it had to withstand.   
She heard herself yelling, begging the alien to stop - even if it meant her own punishment. 

The body of a child this young was bound to be much more fragile than that of an adult. It didn't take long for the small humanoid to stop screaming and fall limp. 

When it hit the ground, it wouldn't move again.   
Its terrified eyes would never blink again. 

Kathryn screamed, fighting against the restraints holding her body in place. She screamed until her voice broke and no further sound came, until her wrists were cut from the restraints, until her own body was struck with another electric blast. 

-

"Captain? Captain! Captain Janeway!"

Kathryn woke with a start, her whole body shaking and droplets of sweat trickling down her face. 

Naomi Wildman was standing next to her bed, at a safe distance. Kathryn must have thrashed in her sleep. 

"Are you alright ...?" The little girl looked very worried as she took a step closer.   
Kathryn nodded, "I ...- yes, I ..." She didn't finish her sentence, but instead sat up to make eye contact. 

Naomi got the message and with a light jump, hopped onto the edge of the bed.   
"I have nightmares sometimes," she explained, trying to comfort her captain in the most adorable way imaginable, "Then Mum wakes me up and sometimes - when it's really bad - she spends the rest of the night with me. We just ... talk, right until I fall asleep. It helps me a lot and the nightmare doesn't come back after that."  

"Oh, Naomi ..." Kathryn managed a small smile at her enthusiasm, "My nightmares are a little more ... complicated." 

"I know. Commander Chakotay told me about it. He said you're scared of the aliens that took you away and that it'd take some time for you to feel better."

She nodded, "That's right."

"I wanted to help you," Naomi gave her a bright smile, "Mum said sometimes all you need to do is talk about what makes you so scared." 

"That's sweet of you." Kathryn reached out to take her hand, surprised at how warm and comforting it was compared to its size. "But what makes me scared is ... really, really terrifying stuff. I don't want you to know things like that at such a young age. But don't worry," she added when she saw the girl's dismay, "I'll be back to normal before you know it." 

"Can I stay and talk about something else though? Sickbay must be boring." Naomi offered.

The Doctor cut in from behind his desk.  
"Naomi," he interjected, "Captain Janeway needs to rest."

"But she'll have nightmares if she falls asleep alone!" 

"Please, Doctor," Kathryn replied quietly, "Let her stay." 

Naomi and Kathryn spent the next two hours together, talking and laughing. The girl had also brought along some things like a PADD with information on the ship's systems - which she and the captain studied, and a drawing program with which the two of them fooled around, sketching other crew members and designing their dream starships. 

Before Kathryn new it, Ensign Wildman had entered sickbay to pick up Naomi.  
"Had a good time?" She smiled at the pair.  
"Absolutely," Kathryn returned the smile with a quick wink before turning to Naomi, "Thank you ... for your time."   
"My pleasure." The girl beamed as she jumped off the bed again. 

Just before she and her mother left, Naomi rushed back to her captain, enveloping her in a tight hug - which Kathryn returned warmly. 

\---

It didn't take much more time until Chakotay walked through sickbay's doors. 

"Sorry I kept you waiting, B'elanna wanted to show me her newest upgrade to one of the engineering systems," he apologized as he took a seat next to Kathryn.

"That's okay," she replied with a smile, "Naomi came to visit ..." She trailed off, the smile fading from her lips. Should she tell him about the dream?

Chakotay noticed her look.  
"Kathryn?" He laid his hand on hers, "Are you alright?"

"I had another one of those nightmares ..." she whispered, staring at their entwined hands, "I saw how the guards murdered a hostage child." 

"Kathryn ..." he got a little closer to her, sitting down on the edge of her bed, "That's ..."

"Horrible, I know. ... And I couldn't do anything, I was restrained, I would've-" Tears started welling up in her eyes. 

He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead before pulling her into his arms - just like he had the night before. 

"Please don't cry, Kathryn," he whispered, "It's over, it's going to be okay." 

From across the room, the Doctor watched them with a sympathetic look. Not once had he seen his captain in this bad a shape. 

"I'm so scared," Kathryn muttered, "Please don't leave me here ... I don't want to spend the night here alone."

Chakotay couldn't quite believe his ears. Kathryn Janeway was ... scared? No, she was terrified. 

"But the Doctor-" he tried to explain, but got interrupted.

"Hell, I don't care what the Doctor says!"

"Kathryn ..."

"Please ..." 

\---

That night, Chakotay convinced the Doctor that Kathryn would be more than safe with him. 

"Sorry for the mess," he muttered as they entered his quarters after stopping at the mess hall for a late night snack.

Kathryn looked exhausted.  
"Don't worry about it," she replied warily as she let herself fall onto his bed. "I might just take this over," she chuckled. 

"Oh, no, you will not," Chakotay replied with a playful grin, dropping down next to her, forcing her to move. 

Her usual self for a split second, she fought back.   
Giggling madly, Kathryn tried to push him off the edge of the bed, but he was stronger and he knew where she was ticklish. 

The playful atmosphere disappeared in an instant when Chakotay accidentally pinned her down on the bed with a little too much force.   
The sparkle vanished from her eyes and her skin grew pale, her breaths shallow and quick. 

"Oh God, I'm so sorry."  
Chakotay immediately pulled back. He had brought one of her memories up again. "I didn't mean to ...-"

"No, don't-" Kathryn held onto his hand before he could pull it away, locking their fingers. 

She remembered the alien guard pinning her against a wall. When he didn't torture her with electric shocks, he tortured her otherwise.   
Their faces inches apart, his long, sharp fingernails dug into her skin and - 

Kathryn shuddered, pulling Chakotay's warm hand closer to herself. 

"I can ... sleep on the couch if that's - um ... more appropriate for you," he offered rather awkwardly.

Even through her clouded mind, she was strong enough to pull him down next to her, so she could snuggle up in his arms. "You're not going anywhere, Commander. You promised me protection."

The discussion was closed.  
"Of course, ma'am."


End file.
